Dear Diary

Blogging is beginning to feel like a Dear Diary entry.  I haven’t actually kept a diary for about 30 years (Yes I am old!), what’s really surprising is it’s actually a good feeling taking time out to think about how to express my week.  I must admit though my teenage diary entries where most definitely intended for my viewing only.  Looking back the amount of times I had a broken heart seems extraordinary, I was one of those kids that got pretty obsessed with certain things and certain people, to be honest when something interests me I can still be pretty obsessive.

Last week already seems so far away, in many ways it was a pretty standard week once I caught up with everything after my trade show. As soon as I’m back, I update the stores about the new product lines they can expect, the team love these updates and it helps keep everyone focussed on the coming months. 

My stores are best described as Lifestyle stores, although many still call them gift shops, personally I dislike the term gift shops, as for me it still conjures up the stores of my youth, you know the type a bit stayed and not particularly dynamic, the image in my head tends to be one of collectable figurines and dust, summed up by that wonderful saying “same old, same old”. I have a tendency to get bored easily, lucky for me this trait works with the stores, it means our stock is constantly evolving, so we are able to keep people interested and coming back for more.

Tuesday was the first day I have really managed to sit down at my pottery wheel since my course at the beginning of the year (I’ve been desperate to sit down and make but had to focus on other areas of the business first).  I was concerned that once back home, the progress I made on the course wouldn’t be evident, clay can be really intimidating at times. I can report back that I ended the day with a big smile on my lips, progress has been made, Yay! Now I’m hoping to develop some new products for the stores over the coming months.  The picture is one of my course makes, which I am really pleased with and hope to make one of the potential ranges around.   

When I’m running I often feel dehydrated so I am now the proud owner of a camel bak rucksack which allows me to take several litres of water out on my longer runs.  So if you are local and you hear what sounds like a baby elephant and swashing water when you are out and about, it may well be me trying to get my miles up.  This morning I managed 13.2 miles and boy they were tough, it amazes me how every time you get out there you can feel totally different. I think over indulging this weekend really came to kick me in the teeth today, it’s made me realise that I’m going to have to focus on changing a few weekend habits as well as increasing my miles, I think the challenge is beginning to grow. 

I’m still a long way off the total I need to raise, so if you are able to sponsor me it would be greatly appreciated. Here’s a link to my fundraising page.